Reliability and Validity Evidence for an Adapted Affect Knowledge Test for Preschool Children Using Rasch Theory

Research Findings: Emotion knowledge is one facet of social and emotional learning (SEL) that emerges in early childhood. Various interventions and measures target preschoolers’ emotional skills to bolster these foundational competencies prior to formal schooling. One measure of emotion knowledge specifically with preschool children is the Affect Knowledge Test (AKT). Despite decades of use and adaptations for different modalities and populations of preschoolers, no study has previously examined the psychometric properties of independent items on the AKT. This study utilized Rasch procedures to analyze how items on the AKT function across a sample of 193 preschoolers (mean age = 49.7 months). Analyses revealed that a unidimensional Rasch model fit well to the item data. Age was a significant predictor of affect knowledge, with older children having increased affect knowledge scores. Results support previous findings of a ceiling effect for older children. Practice and Policy: Our study adds to the empirical understanding of the AKT and its use as a tool to measure emotion knowledge in young children. The children’s scores on the AKT had adequate reliability, supporting the use of AKT for low stakes research-based purposes.